Established as an executive office by the Oklahoma Constitution in 1907, the Commissioner of Charities and Corrections had the duty to investigate the condition and management of all prisons, jails, reformatories, reform and industrial schools, infirmaries, orphanages, hospitals, almshouses, dispensaries, and public and private retreats and asylums supported entirely or in part from public funds. In addition, the Department dealt with the complaints against institutions and intervened on behalf of minor orphans, delinquents or defectives in legal matters directly affecting them.

Beginning in 1959, professional solicitors, profession fund raisers, and charitable organizations had to register with the Commissioner of Charities and Corrections. This agency was abolished in 1978. Its functions were divided between the Department of Public Welfare and the Department of Health.